Intermediate and Advanced Courses

This course provides a broad spectrum of drawing experiences, all of which require direct observation and recording using dry and/or wet media. The core elements of graphic documentation and expression are stressed. These include accurate rendering of proportion, scale, light and shade, texture, luster/lumen, and color. For each project, class members will produce a series of studies and a finished image meeting the criteria for the assignment. Prerequisites: A drawing course or permission of the instructor.

This course is designed to introduce beginning students to the fundamentals of drawing techniques and styles. Subjects will be derived primarily from imaginary forms, textures, structures, and patterns; techniques will be developed through studio exercises, the study of historical precedent, and experimentation. No prerequisites.

Even the earliest examples of art reveal our impulses to portray one another and ourselves, and photography in particular has explored the expressive, conceptual, and aesthetic possibilities of portraiture. This course will investigate all aspects of the photographic portrait/self-portrait, ranging from traditional approaches to more experimental methods. Slides and prints of historic and contemporary photographs will illustrate the creative possibilities of this genre. After completing a series of exploratory assignments during the first half of the course, each student will propose and produce a final body of photographic portraits and/or self-portraits that will culminate in an exhibition of student projects. Prerequisites: Studio Art 102.

This course will focus on advanced wheel throwing techniques and build upon the skills learned in Introduction to Ceramics. Emphasis will be on utility and aesthetics, while working in a series that encourages intense investigation into what makes for a visually interesting and well-crafted, functional pot. Students will learn to make their own clays and glazes, as well as learn to fire their own work in electric, gas, wood kilns. Drinking vessels, bowls, plates, vases, pitchers, jars, teapots, and serving pieces will be explored. Through slides, lectures and films, students will be exposed to a broader range of contemporary and historical ceramic art. The class will maintain a blog and students will learn to photograph their work, write about it, and post blog entries. Prerequisite: Studio Art 106.

This course will focus on advanced hand-building techniques and build upon the skills learned in Introduction to Ceramics. A series of assignments will be given that present design challenges encouraging a conceptual approach to learning new techniques. Large scale hand-built sculpture, mold making, slip casting, clay and glaze mixing, and kiln firing techniques (electric, gas, wood) will all be introduced in this course. An essential part of the course consists of questioning every aspect of the object and one’s relationship to it and to oneself. Through slides, lectures, and films, students will exposed to a broader range of contemporary and historical ceramic art. The class will maintain a blog, and students will learn to photograph their work, write about it, and post blog entries. Prerequisite: Studio Art 106.

The skills addressed in this course are fundamental to work in many 3-D disciplines including sculpture and ceramics. Studio skills will emphasize the recreation of observed form(s), using oil-based/non-hardening clay. In addition to creating basic tools from scratch and making piece molds, bas-relief and 3-D clay modeling will be addressed using both additive and subtractive techniques. Prerequisite: Studio Art 136 or permission of the instructor.

This course emphasizes metal fabrication and safe workshop practices. Exercises and hands-on work address planning, layout, and fabrication of individual or group projects. Techniques covered will include cutting and joining various metals, as well as many related operations and fabrication techniques/methods. Prerequisite: Completion of one studio art course or permission of the instructor.

This module explores the use of specific computer-aided design applications. Students focus on elective topics such as desktop publishing, drafting, 3-D modeling, animation, graphic design, painting, texture mapping, image manipulation, and output. Each student will develop and complete a significant project using the computer as the primary design tool. A personal computer and preferred software is recommended, but not required. Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

This course offers both a survey of 20th-century jewelry design and a series of studio exercises that are designed to extend this history and to provide a range of first-hand creative experiences. Each student will write a research paper (12–15 pages) on the work of one designer or the evolution of a fabrication technique and present at least one research report (oral or written) on a specific approach/technique. A series of exercises and demonstrations will prepare students for the development and completion of three small projects or one major project. Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

This project-based course is suggested for students with previous production experience. It addresses intermediate-to-advanced level topics in field and studio production. Students will receive instruction in scripting for the short film, digital video camera work, lighting, sound recording, and digital editing. Students will be expected to produce at least one short film of their own and to participate fully in the creation of a group project overseen by the instructor. Prerequisite: Studio Art 123 or permission of the instructor.

This course offers students the opportunity to explore various relationships between photography and the written word. Over the course of the semester students construct a number of creative projects in which they bring words and photographic images into play with one another. These include pairing one’s own images and words (e.g., poetic, fictional, autobiographical, journalistic), juxtaposing original images with someone else’s writing, and integrating words and images as part of a coherent creative statement. We will also devote some time to studying, discussing, and writing about the work of professional photographers and writers who have experimented with different approaches to using words and images. Various in-class writing activities along with photo studio work will help students prepare for the main projects. A midterm and final portfolio of writings and photographs will be required. Prerequisite: Studio Art 102 and Literature 150 or samples of writing.

Experimental ideas and processes are introduced and explored. Projects are designed to expand conceptions of the possibilities of the photographic medium by investigating alternative and experimental processes and image making. We may work with multiple and sequential imagery, a range of non-silver techniques, including cyanotypes and palladium printing, or darkroom techniques, including photograms and layered negatives. The course also introduces the techniques and possibilities inherent in computer-processed compositions, and digital photography is presented as a means of creating unique images and prints. Presentations, technical demonstrations, and critiques supplement independent studio work. Each student presents a portfolio of selected prints at the conclusion of the course. Students supply their own camera, film, paper, and related supplies. Prerequisite: Studio Art 102.

This course will chart the development of the documentary film genre, from the late 19th-century explorations of the Lumiere Brothers on up through the resurgence of the form in the early years of the 21st century, with such films as The Fog of War, My Architect, and Capturing the Friedmans. Some of the filmmakers whose work will be examined include Robert Flaherty, Dziga Vertov, Leni Riefenstahl, John Ford, the Maysles Brothers, Frederick Wiseman, Alain Resnais, Marcel Ophuls, Michael Moore, Errol Morris, and Barbara Kopple. Class time will be devoted to viewing films, discussion/analysis of the film “texts,” and lectures on historical and technological aspects of documentary film. Homework will include readings of the textbook and assigned readings, weekly written responses, and two or three essays. No prerequisites.

This course is designed for students interested in digital video production. The strong emphasis of the course is on studio production, utilizing the camera, sound, and lighting resources of the Electronic Arts Studio (EAS) in the Daniel Art Center. Students will be trained in the use of the advanced technology that this space contains, as well as in the theory and methodology of television production within a studio environment. Along with receiving solid grounding in uses of the studio and control room, the students will analyze and discuss various examples of studio production, ranging from types of broadcast journalism through purely fictional applications. Students will participate in projects that deal with intricate lighting, 3-camera design, chroma-key effects, and live-to-tape production. The assignments given in this course are designed to expose the students to the range of possibilities of the Electronic Arts Studio at Simon’s Rock and of television studios and sound stages in general. No prerequisites.

Students explore materials, techniques, painting styles, and color theory. Painting with acrylics is emphasized, though students may also work in oils and are urged to work also in watercolor, pastel, casein, oil pastel, and all drawing media. The course requires an extensive sketchbook, the completion of major projects, and additional work to be established with the instructor. Studio fee. Gesso, lumber, and some materials are supplied; students supply paints, brushes, and canvas. Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

At the 200-level, this course introduces a variety of illustration techniques and styles, determined by each student, who carries out two or three major projects. Upper-level students develop more advanced projects. The course stresses various approaches to selected problems. Students are encouraged to carry out at least one project in a unified style. This might be the illustration of a short novel, a series of short stories, a book of poems, a children’s book, a scientific manual, or a work of “how to” literature. Whatever the content, the task is to produce a series of images suitable for publication. Studio fee. Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

This course is designed for students interested in film and video production, and documentary filmmaking in particular. The students will be trained in the use of camera, sound, lighting, and editing equipment, and will be assigned to work in small groups on the production of documentary films. On a more intellectual and academic plane, the students will be expected to study and critique various styles of documentary film production and to adopt a specific approach that best suits the portrayal of the subject matter. On a humanistic level, the students will be asked to consider their moral obligations to the subject and to form an “ethical contract” with the persons or organizations about whom they wish to make their films. They will also receive instruction in the legal niceties of documentary filmmaking. Class work will be devoted to instruction in equipment and shooting techniques, and viewing and discussion of existing documentaries, as well as of new student works as they develop. Class discussion will always be grounded in the responsibility that the filmmaker bears to his or her subject. Prerequisite: Studio Art 225 or permission of the instructor.

This course addresses the history and practice of sculpture techniques. Some possible topics include clay-modeling, mold-making, carving, casting in plaster or metal, and metal fabrication. Studio fee. Prerequisites: Permission of the instructor. Limited registration.

This course is for those who want to expand on the hand-building, wheel throwing, and glazing skills developed in Studio Art 106. Students may choose whether to throw, hand build, or combine techniques in order to fulfill assignments. Advanced glazing techniques will be explored. Kiln loading and firing methods as well as mold making will be introduced. We will view and discuss slides of historical and contemporary ceramics throughout the course. The class will involve keeping a sketchbook, a field trip, and a group show of work. Prerequisite: Studio Art 106.

Seeing, thinking and photographing in color are explored in this foundation course. Utilizing both analog and digital methods, the expressive possibilities of color photography are investigated through guided assignments, critiques, as well as presentations and discussions on the history and practice of color photography. Theories and perception of color will be discussed. The essentials of Photoshop, scanning, and digital printing are introduced in this course. Students propose and create a final project in the last third of the course. Studio fee. Students supply their own camera, and related supplies. Note: You do not need a digital SLR to participate in this class. Prerequisite: Studio Art 102.

This class is both a studio art class and a photography history class. The idea is to become immersed in the topic of documentary photography both by examining its history and by making photographs. We will make a thematic survey of documentary photography and read contemporary photographic criticism. At the same time students will work on visual assignments that will relate to topics discussed. Topics will include photography and social change; the FSA photographers; urban street photography; issues of voyeurism; race and class; and the relationship between documentary, art photography, and photojournalism. In the beginning of the course students will work on assignments exploring different aspects of documentary photography; after midterm students will propose and complete an extended documentary project. Prerequisite: Studio Art 102 and at least one other photography course.

This course is intended as an introduction to medium and large format photography. The benefits of a larger negative will be explored through demonstrations, slide lectures, discussions, and critiques. Early assignments will focus on the operation and technical abilities of Twin Lens Reflex cameras and View cameras, and later photographic work will make use of these techniques in a longer–term, self-determined project. Each student presents a portfolio of selected prints at the conclusion of the semester. Cameras will be available for student use, but students must supply their own film, printing paper, and related supplies. Studio fee. Prerequisite: Studio Art 102.

The design and structure of the book form is studied through work with drawing, painting, printmaking, photography, computer graphics, or with a combination of media. Initial projects deal with the interaction between words and images and culminate in the production of simple books. Later in the semester, each student plans and produces a complete book or a series of books. Basic forms of bookbinding and other presentation possibilities are explored. The conception of the book is left up to the individual and may range from a traditional approach to a highly experimental form. In all cases, the book is explored as a unique form of creative expression and visual communication. Lectures, presentations, and critiques supplement studio work. Studio fee. Prerequisite: At least one 200-level studio course.

Students draw from the model, using a variety of media. Materials and techniques introduced in Studio Art 103m and Studio Art 203m are pursued to a more advanced level. Superficial muscle and skeletal anatomy are introduced. There are peer and instructor critiques as well as assigned readings from selected texts. Models are provided. Students supply their own materials. Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor.

This course is designed to give serious students a chance to do an ambitious self-designed project within the critical framework and structure of a class. Weekly class critiques of work in progress will form the backbone of this class. Concurrent with studio work we will study the major themes in contemporary photography and read first-hand statements by photographers. In addition, each student will write a critical essay on a topic they develop and research over the course of the semester. Photographic projects will culminate in a fully formed, significant body of work, and an exhibition of student projects. Prerequisites: Studio Art 102 and at least one other photography course.

This class explores the conceptual underpinnings of extended photographic projects. Advanced photography students propose and carry out a semester long photography project with a special focus on developing and articulating the conceptual foundations of the project both visually and in writing. We will examine the relationship between conceptual art and photography. Frequent critiques, process writing, and the study of historical and contemporary photography projects will serve as our primary method of investigation. This course is required for students working on a thesis in photography. Prerequisite: Studio Art 102, at least one other photography course, and permission of the instructor. Students who are not working on a thesis in photography must meet with Tanya Marcuse to get permission to register for this class.

Through self–designed projects, serious students will have the opportunity to build upon the skills and concepts learned in Intermediate Wheel Throwing and Intermediate Hand-building. Emphasis will be on encouraging self-expression by more in depth exploration of experimental ideas with form, concept, and firing. Focus will be on working towards developing a personal aesthetic and body of work. Students will learn to develop and make their own clays and glazes and will focus more heavily on firing principles and techniques. Through slides, lectures, and films, students will exposed to a broader range of contemporary and historical ceramic art. The class will maintain a blog and students will learn to photograph their work, write about it, and post blog entries. Prerequisite: Studio Art 207 and Studio Art 208.

Under these course numbers, juniors and seniors design tutorials to meet their particular interests and programmatic needs. A student should see the prospective tutor to define an area of mutual interest to pursue either individually or in a small group. A student may register for no more than one tutorial in any semester.